"Silence filled the room as Nicholas stared at the middle-aged man on the screen. “So let me see if I correctly understand what you want. I’m supposed to pull a magic trick from my hat – some philosophical model that comes naturally and organically from who they are, that will enable them to survive.”“We’ve tried everything we can think of,” Hugh said.
More silence, except for the rattling of Travis’s mint. “We gotta do somethin.’”
“Without imposing upon their free will,” Rebecca added. “Otherwise the program is irrelevant for our purposes.”
Nicholas removed his glasses and cleaned them on his shirt. “That’s a tall order.”
No one answered.
He replaced the glasses and stared back at the screen. “I’d say nearly impossible.”
More silence.
Finally, Travis answered, “If it wasn’t impossible, bro, I would have found somebody else.”
What if you could know the future? What if you could know how people would react in any given situation? Nicholas Mackenzie is about to witness this firsthand. His brother has created a program that taps into the human consciousness. But there’s a problem. Every time the program is run, the people end up eventually killing each other off. This is where Nicholas is asked to help. Nicholas is a man who prides himself on causing Christians to doubt their belief in God. But what happens when he becomes known as Programmer to those in the virtual world, communicating with them in an attempt to help them survive? He begins to feel what they feel and desire for them to not destroy themselves. How can he save them? And then there are those who want the technology for other purposes. Things become even more dangerous when one of those working for Nicholas’ brother is also working for someone else as well.
I had no idea what to expect with this book but was not disappointed. I loved the twists woven throughout, leaving me wondering what would happen next with the ending being a complete surprise. I loved the comparison to God and His love for us. The way Nicholas only wanted them to understand; to not be bound by the Law but find freedom in it. The ending leaves you with questions but in a way, that’s to be expected.
In conjunction with the CSFF Blog Tour, I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.
Good post, Amber. I think you chose a good passage to quote, and you've shown the intrigue as well as hinted at the spiritual aspects. Certainly should whet the appetite of your readers. ;-)
ReplyDeleteBecky